Michelle Hurley - MIA visit
Upon first entering the space of “River to Infinity,” I did not notice the images being projected on the wall and thought that it was a very calm, relaxing space because of the low lighting and the “river”; it also had a sense of whimsy to it with the glittering rocks, and the fact that you could walk on them. While standing on the stones and looking down, I realized why it was called the “River to Infinity”: there were mirrors above and below that reflected over and over and over again, so that I felt like I could jump into the “river” and just keep falling like Alice in Wonderland down the tunnel. I was tremendously confused by the glittering horse heads behind the structure on the opposite side of the river, but now that I know that some people never even know they are there, I feel like I’m in on one of the artist’s secrets (as well as the other ones she shared with us about using taxidermy forms, blowing up the obelisks, etc.). While I was staring into the river, I heard the BOOM from the video for the first time and nearly fell in! Maybe I would have kept falling like Alice in Wonderland…
I left the space to look at textiles. They were familiar, orderly, and structured. The room they were in was much brighter but felt dark for some reason. It wasn’t until I returned to Stanislav’s installation that I realized that even though the lights were dimmed, the entire space seemed brighter than other rooms (like that with the textiles) because there was so much light reflected off of everything. Then we got to talk to the artist about her work, which gave it even more perspective. I would never have guessed that the piece was questioning societal values in terms of war, but I had felt a sense of conflict in the piece ever since I first heard the “bombs” going off. She talked about going out to an American military base in Utah where they tested bombs in the twentieth century and that it was like being in a “sensory deprivation tank,” which is sort of the feeling you get from the installation because of the black walls and the strangeness of your surroundings; it was almost as if I might have been imagining the things that were happening because they were generally nonsensical. I was half-tempted to tell her that my folks have a farm if she ever needed a place to blow things up!
Speaking of my parents, I think it would be difficult to explain this installation to a couple of farmers without showing them. My dad has no interest in art, but my mom would at least listen. I would explain that there are two rooms with black walls, but the space doesn’t seem dark because there are mirrors wherever you turn. It’s like a normal stream, but you can see forever. There are glittering horses and booming noises, and it’s like stepping into another world where you’re not sure what’s going on, but it’s not unpleasant, either.